UNIT-1

Introduction

Definition and significance in Nursing

Biochemistry can be defined as the branch of science that deals with the study of chemical molecules and their
reactions in the biological system.

Significance in Nursing

The biochemistry knowledge is an essential component in nursing. The importance of clinical biochemistry in
nursing is invaluable. Almost all the diseases or disorders usually involve biochemical variations. So the diagnosis
of any clinical condition is easily possible by biochemical estimations.

Biochemistry is crucial to nurses in understanding how the human body functions in both normal and various disease
states.

If Nursing programs omitted key fundamentals of biochemical pathways, nurses would have no understanding of
how such common things as acute and critical illness, trauma, surgery, cardiac arrest, fever, infection,
hyperglycemia, or starvation, for example, affected their patients.

Nursing interventions are based on this understanding. In critical care, for instance, nurses learn how to preserve
patients' energy by spreading cares throughout the day and night. Blood gasses are performed to ensure that patients’
acid- base balance and oxygenation levels are maintained to promote aerobic metabolism.

Many medications given to patients behave differently if blood sugar is grossly elevated or the patient is septic and
dependent on anaerobic--rather than aerobic--metabolism.

Nurses work as part of patient care teams. Nurses wouldn't be able to help non-medical team and family members
about what is going on with their patients if they didn't have a thorough understanding of biochemical processes and
principles.
Review of structure, composition and functions of cell
EUKARYOTIC AND PROKARYOTIC CELLS

Prokaryotes (from Old Greek pro- before + karyon) are organisms without a cell nucleus (= karyon), or any other
membrane-bound organelles. Most are unicellular, but some prokaryotes are multicellular.

Eukaryotes are organisms whose cells are organized into complex structures by internal membranes and a
cytoskeleton. The most characteristic membrane bound structure is the nucleus. This feature gives them their name,
(also spelled "eucaryote,") Animals, plants, fungi, and protists are eukaryotes.

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PROKARYOTIC CELL

EUKARYOTIC CELL

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Prokaryotic and eukaryotic cell organization

Eukaryotic Cell Prokaryotic Cell

Nucleus Present Absent

No. of chromosomes More than one One--but not true chromosome: Plasmids

Usually unicellular (some cyanobacteria may

Cell Type Usually multicellular
be multicellular)

True Membrane
Present Absent
bound Nucleus

Example Animals and Plants Bacteria and Archaea

Lysosomes &
Present Absent
peroxisomes

Microtubules Present Absent or rare

Endoplasmic
Present Absent
reticulum

Mitochondria Present Absent

Cytoskeleton Present May be absent

Multiple proteins act together to fold and

condense prokaryotic DNA. Folded DNA is
DNA wrapping on Eukaryotes wrap their DNA around
then organized into a variety of conformations
proteins. proteins called histones.
that are supercoiled and wound around
tetramers of the HU protein.

Ribosomes larger Smaller

Vesicles Present Present

Golgi apparatus Present Absent

Chloroplasts Present (in plants) Absent; chlorophyll scattered in the cytoplasm

Microscopic in size; membrane bound; usually Submicroscopic in size, composed of only one
Flagella arranged as 9 doublets surrounding 2 singlets fiber

Permeability of
Selective not present
Nuclear Membrane

Plasma membrane
Yes Usually no
with steroid

Only in plant cells and fungi (chemically

Cell wall Usually chemically complexed
simpler)

Vacuoles Present Present

Cell size 10-100um 1-10um

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CELL COMPONENTS:

Cells are the basic unit of life. The cell components and their roles are discussed below
PLASMA MEMBRANE/CELL MEMBRANE- A lipid bilayer membrane composed of proteins
and carbohydrates in addition. It is fluid like. The cell membrane separates the cell from its external
environment, and is selectively permeable (controls what gets in and out). It protects the cell and
provides stability. Proteins are found embedded within the plasma membrane, with some extending
all the way through in order to transport materials. Carbohydrates are attached to proteins and lipids
on the outer lipid layer.

CYTOPLASM: The jelly-like substance composed of mainly water and found between the cell
membrane and nucleus. The cytoplasm makes up most of the "body" of a cell and is constantly
streaming. Function - Organelles are found here and substances like salts may be dissolved in the
cytoplasm.

NUCLEUS: The largest organelle in the cell. It is dark and round, and is surrounded by a double
membrane called the nuclear envelope/membrane. The nuclear envelope fuses to form pores which
are selectively permeable. The nucleus contains genetic information (DNA) on special strands called
chromosomes. The nucleus is the "control center" of the cell, for cell metabolism and reproduction.
It has dark region called nucleolus in it where rRNA is synthesized.
"ER" OR ENDOPLASMIC RETICULUM- ER is a network of membranous canals filled with
fluid. They carry materials throughout the cell. The ER is the "transport system" of the cell. There are
two types of ER: rough ER and smooth ER. Rough Endoplasmic Reticulum is lined with ribosomes
and is rough in appearance and smooth endoplasmic reticulum contains no ribosomes and is smooth
in appearance. Protein synthesis occurs in RER. Lipid synthesis occurs in SER.
RIBOSOMES: are small particles which are found individually in the cytoplasm and also line the
membranes of the rough endoplasmic reticulum. Ribosomes produce protein. They could be thought
of as "protein factories" in the cell.
GOLGI BODY / APPARATUS - are stacks of flattened membranous stacks (they look like
pancakes!). The Golgi body temporarily stores protein which can then leave the cell via vesicles
pinching off from the Golgi. Hence it is referred as ‘post office’ of the cell.
LYSOSOMES- are small sac-like structures surrounded by a single membrane and containing strong

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digestive enzymes which when released can break down worn out organelles or food. The lysosome
is also known as a suicide bags. The pH of the lysosome is slightly acidic 4.5-5.0 compared to basic
cytosol.
MITOCHONDRIA- are round "tube-like" organelles that are surrounded by a double membrane,
with the inner membrane being highly folded. The mitochondria are often referred to as the
"powerhouse" of the cell. The mitochondria release food energy from food molecules to be used
by the cell. This process is called respiration. Some cells (muscle cells) require more energy than
other cells and so would have many more mitochondria.
ANIMAL CELL ORGENELLES NOT FOUND IN PLANT CELLS:
CILIA AND FLAGELLA: Both cilia and flagella are hair-like organelles which extend from the
surface of many animal cells. The structure is identical in both, except that flagella are longer and
whip like and cilia are shorter. There are usually only a few flagella on a cell, while cilia may cover
the entire surface of a cell. The function of cilia and flagella include locomotion for one-celled
organisms and to move substances over cell surfaces in multi-celled organisms.

Functions of Cell

A cell performs these major functions essential for the growth and development of an organism.
Important functions of cell are as follows:

 Provides Support and Structure

All the organisms are made up of cells. They form the structural basis of all the organisms. The cell
wall and the cell membrane are the main components that function to provide support and structure to
the organism. For eg., the skin is made up of a large number of cells. Xylem present in the vascular
plants is made of cells that provide structural support to the plants.

 Facilitate Growth during Mitosis

In the process of mitosis, the parent cell divides into the daughter cells. Thus, the cells multiply and
facilitate the growth in an organism.

 Allows Transport of Substances

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Various nutrients are imported by the cells to carry out various chemical processes going on inside the
cells. The waste produced by the chemical processes is eliminated from the cells by active and passive
transport. Small molecules such as oxygen, carbon dioxide, and ethanol diffuse across the cell
membrane along the concentration gradient. This is known as passive transport. The larger molecules
diffuse across the cell membrane through active transport where the cells require a lot of energy to
transport the substances.

 Energy Production

Cells require energy to carry out various chemical processes. This energy is produced by the cells
through a process called photosynthesis in plants and respiration in animals.

 Aids in Reproduction

A cell aids in reproduction through the processes called mitosis and meiosis. Mitosis is termed as the
asexual reproduction where the parent cell divides to form daughter cells. Meiosis causes the daughter
cells to be genetically different from the parent cells. Thus, we can understand why cells are known as
the structural and functional unit of life. This is because they are responsible for providing structure to
the organisms and performs several functions necessary for carrying out life’s processes.

MICROSCOPY: Microscopy is the act of using a microscope to view tiny things that cannot be seen
with the unaided eye. There are three main types of microscopy: optical microscopy, scanning probe
microscopy, and electron microscopy. Antonie Van Leeuwenhoek is considered as the father of
microscopy.
A general biological microscope mainly consists of an objective lens, ocular lens, lens tube, stage,
and reflector. An object placed on the stage is magnified through the objective lens. When the target
is focused, a magnified image can be observed through the ocular lens.

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 Telescopes also have a similar structure; however, they are used for observing distant objects.
A telescope receives light from a star or other distant object with the objective lens and adjusts the
refracted light to the focal point through the ocular lens. On the other hand, a microscope is designed

to emit light onto or through objects and magnify the transmitted or reflected light with the objective
and ocular lenses.

Phase Contrast Microscopy: The human eye can perceive changes in light amplitude (intensity).
Unstained biological specimens, such as living cells, are essentially transparent to our eyes, but they
interact with light in a fairly uniform way, by retarding (slowing) the passage of a light beam by
approximately 1/4 of a wavelength. The phase contrast microscope was invented by Zernicke in
the 1930's as a means to generate contrast in biological specimens, changing these invisible phase
differences into visible amplitude differences.

Electron microscopy creates an image by firing electrons at an object. The electrons bounce off the
object and return to a sensor which creates an image from the data. The benefit of an electron
microscope is that electrons have a wavelength 100,000 times smaller than light, so that increases the
resolution of the image. This is what really makes it possible to view an atom.

Fluorescence Microscopy: In certain classes of atoms and molecules, electrons absorb light, become
energized, and then rapidly lose this energy in the form of heat and light emission. If the electron
keeps its spin, the electron is said to enter a singlet state, and the kind of light that is emitted as the
electron returns to ground state is called fluorescence. If the electron changes its spin when excited, it

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enters the triplet state, and the kind of light that is emitted as the electron returns to ground state is
known as phosphorescence. Phosphorescence is much longer-lived than fluorescence. Both
fluorescence and phosphorescence emissions are of particular wavelengths for specific excited
electrons. Both types of emission are dependent on specific wavelengths of excitation light, and for
both types of emission, the energy of excitation is greater than the energy of emission.

Polarized light microscopy: When light passes through an object, it interacts with some or all of the
atoms and molecules present in that object. In these interactions, sometimes light of a particular (i.e.,
color) is absorbed by the atoms or molecules, while sometimes light is scattered. The interaction of
light with a translucent object often results in a slight reduction in the velocity of the light beam. The
extent of this reduction in velocity can be measured as the refractive index of the object.